Reverse Images 5: Paint, Wine, & Roses
by Higuchimon
Summary: Hayato is just a wandering artist, seeking new vistas to paint. In a world where the incarnation of the Destructive Darkness seeks to rule, even a wandering artist can be more than what he seems.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.  
 **Fandoms:** Yu-Gi-Oh GX  
 **Title:** Paint, Wine,  & Roses  
 **Characters:** Hayato, Asuka,  & Misawa (also Ryou & Camula, and mayhap some Haou later)  
 **Word Count:** chapter 1: 2,626|| **story:** 2,626  
 **Genre:** Drama, Angst|| **Rated:** PG-13  
 **Challenge:** Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section I, #07, multichapter with exactly 4 chapters; Written for the GX Non-Flash Bingo, #007, Maeda Hayato; Written for the Halloween Trick or Treat (Advent), Day #1: use a random character generator three times. Use all of these characters in a fic. (characters: Hayato, Misawa, and Asuka)  
 **Notes:** This takes place in the world where Juudai is the incarnation of the Darkness of Destruction. Johan has been broken by him and Ryou...well, this is how what happened to him is revealed.  
 **Summary:** Hayato is just a wandering artist, seeking new vistas to paint. In a world where the incarnation of the Destructive Darkness seeks to rule, even a wandering artist can be more than what he seems.

* * *

It wasn't much of a road. It wound down from the high reaches of the mountains, widened enough so that a handful of houses and a sprinkling of buildings that thought highly enough of themselves to be known as shops could huddle together, and then wound down out of the area. A road that went from nowhere to nowhere, so far as the eyes could see, at least as far as those who lived in that little village thought.

Hayato thought of it differently, but that was because he'd spent months traveling on it. He'd spent months traveling on almost any road, and as far as he was concerned, they were really all one road that connected to each other on different levels and in different places.

Death Koala understood when he said something like that, but Death Koala had been with him since he was barely more than a boy himself. They'd walked the same roads together, or driven them, or whatever they'd needed to do. There weren't many others who'd done that.

The village rested ahead of them, providing a place to rest at last after the long journey out of the peaks jutting up behind them. Hayato clucked at the mule that pulled his small wagon along, trying to get just a little more speed out of the weary creature. The sun hadn't completely set yet, but long shadows already stretched their fingers across the land, and after the rumors he'd heard the last few days, it was probably better to get inside before it was too dark to see.

The closer he drew to the village, the more he could see people who seemed to have the same idea as he did, as they hurried about their tasks, casting worried looks to the sky more and more with each passing moment. As Hayato reined in his donkey, one of those people paused to look at him.

"Who are you, stranger?"

None of the ones that he could see were armed, either by conventional weaponry or duel disks, but Hayato replied politely nevertheless. "Only a traveler. Is there anywhere that I could stay for the night?"

"Just for the night?" The local gave him a stern, judgmental look.

"Maybe longer. I don't know yet." Hayato gave a pleasant shrug. "I'll want to check the area out to see if there's anything I'd like to paint while I'm here. That's part of what I do." He reached behind himself into the wagon, not surprised to see the other take a careful step back as he did. For being as far out of the way as this village was, it clearly had tasted the horrors of the war.

He pulled out one of his showpiece paintings; the ones that he kept around not to sell but to show what he could do and the skill he had in doing it. A simple valleyscape, that was all this was, one gloriously crafted in shades of green and blue and brilliant gold. He took a moment to make certain it hadn't suffered any damage, then flipped it around to show.

"I paint. I also sell a few odds and ends." He gestured to the back of his wagon; one couldn't see much in there, but he knew what he carried. "Now, is there an inn around here?"

The local said nothing for a moment or two and Hayato had about resigned himself to locating an empty patch of ground and hoping he wouldn't be bothered when he pointed toward one of the buildings. "Over there. They don't have a lot of space, though. Better hurry."

Hayato nodded at once, clucking to the donkey and heading over that way at a pace just a fraction speedier than a lazy amble. He could almost feel the local's eyes on his back as he made his way over there. He'd see that one sooner or later, he thought. Curiosity clearly had him bit, even if he didn't want to show it. After all of his years of travel, Hayato had learned how to tell when someone wanted to know more.

It came in handy for _both_ of his professions.

Getting a room at the inn wasn't possible, since it was really more of a tavern that sold space in front of the fireplace to travelers. Hayato was more than willing to put up with that. Rumors flung themselves out on the wind and the most recent ones said that to sleep outdoors meant one would perish in the most horrible ways sooner or later.

Not that sleeping indoors always protected one, but the terrors that stalked in the night seemed more likely to go for what wasn't protected by even a thin layer of wood.

So Hayato put his donkey up in the stable, parking the wagon and what supplies he didn't think he'd need in a spare space there, and taking what he would need in there with him. The main room of the tavern had been empty when he'd left and now it seemed everyone in the village who could fit their way in there was doing so.

"So you're a painter?" The tavern keeper asked, pouring drinks at the same time. "What's a painter doing in this neck of the woods?"

"Looking for new scenes to paint," Hayato replied, not missing a beat. "Even these days, I have to make a living, and this is the best way I can."

He wasn't lying, of course. His painting kept him in food and drink and shelter. His other job he did from the sheer love of it, if one could call risking his life something he did out of love. Which, of course, he did. He wouldn't have done it otherwise.

There were hmphs and murmurs and a few questions tossed about; those he answered to the best of his ability. The crowd here was something of a mixed one; a few humans, a few spirit types, one or two who looked as if they were a little from either category, if not actually both.

"If any of you are interested in checking out my paintings, I can set up the ones that are for sale tomorrow," Hayato said, taking a drink from the mug the tavern keeper handed him. "And I can show you what else I've got." He considered for a moment, and decided not to mention the supply of rice wine he carried with him. In this corner of the woods, beer seemed the more likely beverage. At least this was decent beer, and not something inclined to take the polish off of wood.

Dozens of other little conversations sprang up as it became clear he wasn't going to produce things for them to buy right then and there. Hayato sipped at his drink, pretending to be lost in his own thoughts, when in reality, he kept his attention flicking from conversation to conversation, listening for anything that might catch him for more than a few seconds.

It wasn't until nearly half an hour into the evening that anything really came up. He didn't show any extra interest by so much as a twitch of one hair, but just kept on drinking his beer and making small designs on the counter in front of him.

"Yeah, I saw it. Saw them, really, there were two of them." This came from someone who bore the rough clothes and callused fingers of an archer. "I don't think they saw me, and that's probably why I'm here right now." He shook his head, fear flickering across his face.

"Are they coming this way?" Hayato couldn't see who asked that; either they were very small, or very far in the back, but he wanted to know the answer as much as they did.

"Do they really work for _him_?" Hayato didn't need to ask who that was. There were few people who dared to speak Haou's title, let alone his name. Rumor had it that spells had been cast that allowed him to know when someone said either one of those, and no one wanted his attention brought down on them for any reason whatsoever.

The archer drained his cup of beer and gestured for another, which the tavern keeper quickly brought. "I think so. I didn't stop them and ask where they were going." He let out a rude snort at the very thought. "And who else would they work for?"

Hayato's grip on his cup tightened a fraction. _I'll have to see them._ That ran more risks than he wanted to think about, but he needed to do it, for the sake of everyone else back at the base, not for himself.

"Should we lock up tonight?" Someone else wanted to know. "Would locks do any good against them?"

The archer threw back his beer with a speed that meant he couldn't have tasted it at all. "How should I know? But if it comes to that, it's better than not doing anything at all."

Hayato saw nothing to argue with in that. He finished his own beer and waited for the crowd to thin out so he could get himself situated by the fire. The tavern keeper gave him the usual rules to the general effect of 'don't burn the place down' and 'I don't sell food, get your own meals' that Hayato had heard from dozens like him in dozens of places like this. He had food with him, and once it was just him and the fire, he nibbled on bread and apples and made his plans.

* * *

Night fell over the village. All those huts and homes that had the good fortune to have locks put them to use, even without knowing how useful they could be. Better safe than sorry, in a world where the armies of evil roamed freely.

In the shadows of the tavern, one spirit hid itself, waiting and watching. Death Koala would've preferred doing almost anything else, but especially having a good meal and a good sleep by the fire with his partner, but duty called, and just like Hayato, he understood that some pleasures had to be earned a little more than others.

They'd both heard the rumors, even before they'd come here, and this seemed the most likely place for the ones they searched for to strike next. This little space in the road wasn't much at all; it offered little to the world around it, and thus would be the kind of place a pair of hungry vampires would feel free to drain to the very last drop. So here they would wait until they knew one way or the other.

Death Koala didn't move a muscle. At a moment's thought it could return to its card, safe in Hayato's deck case, but until it knew what was going on, it wouldn't. That was a last move, a way to get back without being seen or being able to be tracked by anyone.

He had no way to tell just how much time passed other than by the slowly rising moon. Long strings of silver slipped across the valley, broken on occasion by the passing of clouds and the tossing of the wind through the trees.

Somewhere in the middle of all of that, two figures emerged from the shadows. Death Koala froze, suddenly wakeful. Few beings could sleep in the presence of evil such as this. He couldn't see who they were, but he could recognize the sense of twisted evil in them all the same.

One of them moved up close to one of the houses, resting a slender hand upon the door. Death Koala couldn't hear anything being said, but far too soon the latch opened from the inside and the door swung open. There stood a young man, eyes glazed, signs of an internal struggle all over his features. The one who stood at the door let loose a deep sigh of anticipation before reaching out to grab him by the hair, bend his head to the side, and sink fangs that shone in the moonlight into his neck.

 _Vampires!_

Death Koala had seen others of this kind before, spirits mostly. It was said there had been another breed, born from the intermarriage of the undead spirits and humans, far more powerful than either of their progenitors. No one knew what had become of them over the centuries, but this stranger bore many of the signs of being that breed.

He couldn't get a good enough look at the other one to be completely certain just yet. Whoever it was, they stayed a few steps away, wrapped in a cloak that made it harder to tell what they were paying attention to, their companion or the area around them, watching for trouble.

The vampire sucked and sucked, draining their victim dry, until finally letting him drop the ground carelessly, then turned toward the other.

"Your turn," a soft female voice floated through the evening air. "Make certain you don't disturb anyone else."

Death Koala saw a small nod as the second one moved forward, selecting another house. He still couldn't get a look at their face and he _wanted_ to. Under normal circumstances, he and Hayato wouldn't have stayed in such a situation. Their mission required them both to remain alive at any costs, so staying where they could become vampire chow wasn't a good idea.

But they were looking for someone and if there was any chance that this vampire could be that someone, they had to investigate it.

The second vampire set one hand on the door, much as the other had. It took longer this time, with the set of their shoulders indicating a strain the female vampire hadn't felt. Just when Death Koala thought it might not work, the door opened. This time the man was older, and somewhat more aware of what was going on around him.

The female vampire breathed in the air closer to them and chuckled. "He has a family. He thinks we'll leave if we take him, and they'll be spared."

"And they won't be." A flat statement from the second vampire, spoken in a male voice.

Her laugh tinkled over the entire village, and Death Koala suspected that anyone who was still awake heard it and anyone who wasn't shuddered in the grip of foul dreams because of it.

"Perhaps for tonight. But we'll come here again and again, until there's no 'here' to come back to. Now, have your dinner."

Shoulders stiff, the second vampire sank his own fangs into the neck of his victim, his movements a little more unpracticed than hers. He did seem hungrier, however, and almost as soon as she had, he finished the grisly deed.

Death Koala inched just a fraction closer, glad that the wind wouldn't bring his scent to them. He didn't know if vampires would find his kind tasty or not and he didn't think now was a good time to find out. What he really wanted was just a look at that other vampire's face.

Both of them turned and now the moonlight fell directly on them both. Death Koala hadn't entirely been expecting this, and a small squeaking noise came out from him as he caught sight of the second vampire's face. Both of them turned toward him right away, one in curiosity, one in rising anger.

"A spy!" she hissed, fingers clutching into fists for a moment before she gestured, a swarm of bats appearing in the area above them. "Find this spy and bring them to me, my little darlings!"

Death Koala decided that discretion was clearly the better part of valor, and let himself fade to his card.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.  
 **Fandoms:** Yu-Gi-Oh GX  
 **Title:** Paint, Wine,  & Roses  
 **Characters:** Hayato, Asuka,  & Misawa (also, Ryou, Camula, and Haou)  
 **Word Count:** chapter 2: 2,748|| **story:** 5,354  
 **Genre:** Drama, Angst|| **Rated:** PG-13  
 **Challenge:** Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section I, #07, multichapter with exactly 4 chapters; Written for the GX Non-Flash Bingo, #007, Maeda Hayato; Written for the Halloween Trick or Treat (Advent), Day #1: use a random character generator three times. Use all of these characters in a fic.  
 **Notes:** This takes place in the world where Juudai is the incarnation of the Darkness of Destruction. Johan has been broken by him and Ryou...well, this is how what happened to him is revealed.  
 **Summary:** Hayato is just a wandering artist, seeking new vistas to paint. In a world where the incarnation of the Destructive Darkness seeks to rule, even a wandering artist can be more than what he seems.

* * *

Hayato remained where he was, flat on his back and staring up at the ceiling. Or he would've been staring at it, if his eyes had been open. He kept them closed to at least maintain the illusion that he was sleeping, presuming that someone might come in and look at him. He wasn't _expecting_ anyone, but one didn't wander this world for as long as he had and not at least attempt to plan for as much as possible.

Even with his eyes closed, he kept every other sense that he could manage turned to absolute alertness. Something was going on outside. He'd heard voices, too low-pitched for him to hear what they said, but voices that he suspected shouldn't have been there. If they were doing anything on the up and up, then they shouldn't have been whispering the way they were. Yes, it was night, and he imagined most people in the village were more than likely asleep and wouldn't appreciate any loud chatter.

But this wasn't the tone of people who didn't want to wake people up out of courtesy. These people, whoever they are, were being quiet so no one would hear them moving around and get curious.

He itched to get up and check on who it might be and what they were doing, but he made himself stay still anyway. Death Koala was out there watching. He would tell Hayato what he needed to know. There weren't many things that could stop a spirit.

The artist had no idea of how long his partner had been gone when he sensed the return of the spirit. He shifted, making a soft, sleepy noise as he did, and rested the fingers of one hand on the card hidden within his jacket. There wasn't anything unusual about wearing as many clothes as one could at night; it made certain that no one could try to steal them. If a thief wanted them that much, said thief would probably simply stab you and be done with it anyway.

Death Koala wasn't a talkative creature at all, but over their years of partnership, Hayato learned how to work out what the other wanted to tell him from facial expressions and whatever noises he would make.

What he saw now sent chills down his spine. "Vampires? You're certain?"

Death Koala nodded, eyes shifting over toward the door. Hayato wiggled around again, looking for all the world as if he were just restlessly turning in his sleep. From what he could see underneath his mostly closed lids, there wasn't anything going on outside. Or if it was, it was very inconveniently not happening in front of the tavern windows.

He wasn't going to write off what his partner told him, though, not by any means at all. He'd already heard rumors and stories about people found in the morning, drained dry of all of their blood. Tales like that were common in regions inhabited by the undead types, Vampire Lord and Lady and their kin, but not this kind of area. Those vampires tended to the humans in their area as if they were prized cattle, making certain not to overhunt them. He wouldn't have wanted them for neighbors, but they had as much right to eat as anyone else did, and from what he'd heard, the humans in the area all understood their needs and bargains were frequently made that benefited everyone.

But again, that wasn't in _this_ territory, which brought up possibilities that he didn't like at all. He couldn't decide which one of them it was on his own, not without seeing who it might be, and taking the chance of looking out the door was a chance he wasn't certain if he wanted to take.

 _If it is her, then if she saw me, I'd be dead anyway._

Every rebel and many people who weren't rebels knew about _her_. Hayato would've preferred never meeting her face to face, much as he would prefer never meeting Haou face to face. So he stayed right where he was, his heart beating faster, and hoped that if it really was her, that she wouldn't find him.

Something moved close to the door. Hayato did all that he could to remain relaxed, feigning sleep. He didn't think he heard footsteps, so much as he heard something touching the door itself. He did not want to ask Death Koala; the powers of spirits or magicians could give him away if he tried. He would just have to hope that staying like he was would be enough.

There were two windows on either side of the door, if one wished to be generous enough to call them windows. They were cutouts in the walls, mainly to let any smoke and noise out than anything else, covered over by the same wood that had been cut out in an attempt to keep bugs out of there. With his eyes almost closed, allowing only a small view of the room, Hayato could tell that something _was_ out there. Something roughly human-sized and human-shaped. Which still left a great deal of options, but did not rule out vampires at all.

Whatever it was didn't stand there long, but Hayato didn't think they moved back because they wanted to. A stream of squeaky-voiced things flew by and he automatically identified them as bats. One of them wriggled inside by some opening Hayato couldn't see and whirled around the room. Hayato remained even more quiet if he could. This could not be good at all.

The bat only stayed in the main room for as long as it took to whirl around, then headed back out the way that it came. Hayato _still_ didn't let himself relax.

He'd been taught too long and too hard that relaxing when out in the field could mean one's death. Pegasus made certain he knew that before letting Hayato take on even the slightest, most innocent of missions, back in the days before slipping up could mean the worst of deaths.

He let himself dwell on that for a few moments. If someone was still watching him, then they wouldn't be able to tell he was trying to learn anything about them at all. Bound up in dreams and memories, that's what he was and all that he was, an artist seeking inspiration inside of his own mind.

How long had it been since he'd last seen his mentor? Five years, maybe even ten. Pegasus was one of those who did not age that much once he'd achieved maturity, so thinking of how he looked then and now wouldn't do much good.

Pegasus might even be dead. Hayato hadn't heard from him, but he hadn't heard from many people, and he'd met them all alive before. Unless you happened to see someone die yourself, or at least had it on reputable report from someone who had, it was best to presume that they were alive somewhere. It saved a lot of sleepless nights.

The last time he'd seen Pegasus, he'd made preparations to retire from the public eye. He'd revealed only to Hayato that he'd given thought to faking his death in another year or two and seeing what he could accomplish traveling with his favorite bodyguard. So far as Hayato knew, he hadn't enacted that plan yet, but if he did hear a whiff of Pegasus being dead, he would not be swift to believe it.

The presence outside began to move away. Hayato still kept his thoughts on Pegasus, determined not to change until he either fell asleep or had a good enough reason to think it was safe to think of something else.

Pegasus helped him refine his own art skills, as well as teaching him other matters. His reasoning had been simple and effective.

"No one thinks anything of an artist. We're seen as ridiculous fools who wander where no one sane would dare to tread, risking our lives for a pretty sunset or a lovely river view. They don't see us. They don't care about us, and no one thinks anything at all of us when we're gone." He smiled, a smile that Hayato didn't recall seeing Pegasus showing to anyone else. "And that is what makes us _useful_ and more: it's what makes us dangerous."

When he'd spoken those words, the war against Haou had barely been in its infancy. A few skirmishes here and there, a few villages that fell to his growing army, and nothing more. But with each year that passed, his power grew, his reach extended, and Hayato knew that without someone to go out and send back information, the slowly forming rebellion would fall before him.

So that was what he did. He and his mule and his wagon, trundling along to wherever he thought he could get a scrap or two of information, and sending it back in ways that only those of the rebellion could understand.

He would have to do it again, too. A little information wasn't much, but every tiny bit he could find could combine with other scraps and make a whole that told them what was happening. That was how they'd learned what happened to Johan, after all.

And what Hayato now suspected had happened to the Kaiser. He wanted so much to just see this vampire, just to see if it answered all of the other questions boiling about in his mind.

A soft pressure came from where Death Koala rested and Hayato turned his thoughts that was. All that his companion had told him before was the concept of 'vampires'. Now another word came, tinged with sorrow and bits of anger.

Death Koala almost never got angry, much like Hayato himself. But Hayato could feel it as strongly as he could his own rage.

 _Kaiser. Vampire._

Hayato tried to keep breathing and not choke on his own shock. He'd _heard_ rumors to this extent, but when someone went on a deep-cover mission like Kaiser's, rumors of true treachery were only to be expected. No one who knew the truth would admit it to anyone else; the slightest word could've gotten back to Haou at the wrong moment. That could even be how he'd been discovered in the first place. They all knew it had happened. How and what came of it was what they didn't know, and finding that out was part of Hayato's current mission anyway.

Every instinct he owned told him to get up and go see Kaiser for himself. He beat them all back, reminding himself that Kaiser could not be trusted now and he would have to find out what happened another way. A very dangerous way wove itself into his mind, but one that he couldn't implement for another day, at least.

Silence fell down deeper around the village. The vampires were no longer there. Hayato closed his eyes all of the way, knowing what they would find in the morning and hating it already. Nothing he could do could change it, though. Even going out to try to tend to the bodies would either get him killed or accused of being an accomplice somehow. He couldn't risk that. Not with the information he'd come for tantalizingly within reach.

So he let himself slide into sleep and hoped that the morning would bring at least a clearer head to work with.

* * *

"Has anyone heard from Hayato lately?" Asuka asked, looking up from the reports. She'd noticed there hadn't been anything from their wandering spy for a while, and that did not make her happy at all. Not when Haou not only had Johan firmly and irrevocably under his thumb, but no one had heard anything directly from Ryou in far too long.

Granted, Hayato wasn't the only spy that wandered around gathering information for them, but most of the others had reported in recently enough that she didn't worry about them very much.

Shou paged through his own reports, his eyes darkening with worry with each passing moment, until he finally put them all down. "Nothing since the last time, when he was going through Zhalren and let us know about Haou setting up an outpost there."

Thanks to that information, they'd cleaned that outpost out thoroughly and burned it to the ground. It was one of their better victories against Haou, small though it was in comparison to some of their losses.

Edo leaned back in his chair, lips compressed together. "What do you think the odds are that he's in some kind of trouble?" Spying on Haou in any fashion was a risk. Even with Hayato not being as close as Ryou had been, if he were found out, the results could be nightmarish. They'd barely even gotten settled into their latest headquarters, one they were certain neither Johan nor Ryou knew about.

"I've got some contacts in the area," Manjoume spoke up after a silent moment or two. "I'll see what they can find."

Everyone knew when Manjoume said 'contacts' he meant only one thing: spirits who he'd bonded with. No one knew why, of all people, got along with them the way that he did, but he had more spirit friends and allies than anyone else they could think of short of either Johan or Haou himself.

Haou didn't count. All of his 'allies' were either as twisted as he was or brainwashed. And these days, that included Johan and many of those who'd been his friends in the past.

Edo nodded his acknowledgment before dismissing them all. Asuka wished there was something more she could do aside from have another training session, but without more information than they had on Haou's movements, there wasn't much that she _could_ do.

"Tenjoin-kun."

She knew who said that just from what he said. Manjoume stood a pace or two from her, concern in his eyes. "Yes?"

"I'm going to talk to my f – to my contacts," the young man told her. She held back a smile at his refusal to use the word 'friends' for those spirits. In many ways, he hadn't changed from the brash youth he'd been when they first met. "Would you like to come along?"

She considered that for a quick moment or two before nodding. Anything that would keep her focused on her goal, which she'd set for now as 'finding out what happened to Ryou', and since Hayato was on that mission, that meant finding out if he was still alive and with them. Finding out one was true didn't always means both of them were.

* * *

Haou's fingers brushed absently through Johan's hair as he half-listened to the reports his minions brought him. All he really wanted to hear was that the rebels had been completely squashed out, never to be heard from again, which would give him the chance to turn his full attention to crushing whatever remains there were into useless dust.

Unfortunately, he never got to hear such a pleasant report and had to make do with the slowly shifting tides of battle, some skirmishes lost here, others won there. Most fights were more in his favor these days, with both Johan and Hell Kaiser serving him, but it still wasn't fast enough for his tastes.

Very little would have been fast enough, really. He wanted to get this over and done with, and the sooner the better.

Movement caught his attention and he looked to see Camula and Hell Kaiser entering the throne room. The minion reporting silenced himself with a wave of Haou's hand as the last of her vampire people stood before him, and her creation -more precisely, his slave – knelt by her side.

"And how is our new vampire's training going?" Haou asked, leaning forward with one fist pressed under his chin. His eyes sparked with cold interest, quite eager to see the progression of Hell Kaiser's submission.

No one spied on him without suffering for it. This particular punishment would be a unique one, since death would've been a blessing to the defiant duelist. Should any other spies be discovered, Haou already knew their fate: feeding Hell Kaiser's hunger.

"Very well indeed, Haou-sama," Camula purred in reply, resting her hand on Hell Kaiser's head. "And I have what may be interesting news for you as well."

"Do tell." Haou liked interesting news. It frequently gave him the chance to kill something. Or someone.

And how he loved to kill.

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.  
 **Fandoms:** Yu-Gi-Oh GX  
 **Title:** Paint, Wine,  & Roses  
 **Characters:** Hayato, Asuka,  & Misawa  
 **Word Count:** chapter 3: 2,611|| **story:** 7,985  
 **Genre:** Drama, Angst|| **Rated:** PG-13  
 **Challenge:** Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section I, #07, multichapter with exactly 4 chapters; Written for the GX Non-Flash Bingo, #007, Maeda Hayato; Written for the Halloween Trick or Treat (Advent), Day #1: use a random character generator three times. Use all of these characters in a fic.  
 **Notes:** This takes place in the world where Juudai is the incarnation of the Darkness of Destruction. Johan has been broken by him and Ryou...well, this is how what happened to him is revealed. **Summary:** Hayato is just a wandering artist, seeking new vistas to paint. In a world where the incarnation of the Destructive Darkness seeks to rule, even a wandering artist can be more than what he seems.

* * *

Hayato considered the canvas in front of him for a moment or two before he dipped his paintbrush back into the paint and added a careful line in just the right position. To the casual onlooker, he was perhaps halfway finished with the glorious rendition of the mountain view in front of him. Perhaps not identical, but close enough that no one would think he hadn't been inspired by it.

Now he added another line, creating a twining vine of wisteria wrapped around a tall tree. He would need to get more of this color as soon as he could; he might need it for the future.

Death Koala, apparently fast asleep on a sprawl of rocks to one side, turned over and scratched at his left side. Hayato bent his head the tiniest of fractions and kept on working.

When a voice spoke up from behind him, he wasn't at all surprised. "What are you doing?"

He looked over at the young woman standing behind him, her brownish-red hair tossing in the breeze. Her eyes were rimmed in red and her cheeks a little puffy, sure signs that whatever else she'd been going before coming this way, crying had been somewhere on the list. Hayato gave her a reassuring smile.

"Just a little artwork. I'm hoping to sell it in the next town over. Or somewhere. What about you?"

She shrugged, hands clenching at the sides of her gown. Black as could be, another sign that something wasn't right with her. "I'm supposed to be mourning."

He tilted his head, silently requesting more information if she chose to give it. Her hands tightened even more and she turned to look at the tall mountains for a few moments.

"You heard about the attacks, didn't you?"

Of course he had. Everyone had. Two people found dead in the street, the only sign of injury on them bite marks. And he knew full well who had left them like that. But telling these people they had two vampires in the area wouldn't go over well at all. They'd probably try to placate them by sending people to them somehow. That would never work. It would make the vampires _happy_ , no doubt, but it wouldn't stop them from killing at all.

So all he did was nod his head. She nodded back, lips pressed together firmly.

"My grandfather was one of them. He knew what was going on. He went outside on purpose to keep them from getting to us." She rubbed at one of her eyes and kept on staring at the mountains. "He said he loved us and he said good-bye and they killed him. Just took all of his blood."

Her fists tightened harder and he could see a gleam of tears in her eyes that she was trying hard not to acknowledge. "I saw them, you know. Both of them. The man and the woman."

Hayato did his very best not to show a bit of surprise. At least not the kind of surprise where she might guess that he had as well, much less that he knew one of them. "What did they look like?"

"They were both… beautiful." She said the word as if it hurt to even think about. "I think she was the one in charge. I couldn't really hear them, but I wasn't trying to. I just kind of snuck up to the window and peeked out after… after..." She shook her head and wiped at her eyes. "I want to kill them. I want to make them _suffer_. My parents… they… they made sure grandpa's body was burned. They said they didn't want him to...to be like them."

That wasn't a surprise either. Hayato fumbled for anything that he could say that would make sense to her. How could he tell her that he doubted the Kaiser, Marufuji Ryou, would have _wanted_ to do any of that? That he'd risked his life to help others in this war and the odds fell against him? If he said a thing in support of him, she'd probably insist that he was on the vampires' side and should be burned as well.

Bad idea. _Very_ bad idea.

"There are vampire hunters," he said at last. "I've met a few. They're hard to find and hard to convince, but if you wanted to try..." It was the best that he could do for her. Maybe she'd find Camula and be able to take care of her.

He didn't want to think of her 'taking care of' Ryou, but he would probably not object that much. Hayato knew the Kaiser well enough for that.

Her head snapped around sharply, her eyes wide with a hope that hadn't existed moments earlier. "You really think so?"

"I think it's something you could try." He chose his words with care. "But I don't know where you could go. You'd have to figure it out for yourself."

She raised up her head, determination in every line of her. "Someone has to do it."

"Be careful. Vampires aren't something to take lightly." It was the best he could tell her. Maybe once her anger and grief wore off she'd think about it differently, but that wasn't what she wanted to hear right now. She wanted revenge and this was all that he could offer to her.

She wandered a bit closer to his painting, peering at it without reaching to touch it. "That's really what this looks like," she said, waving one hand from the canvas to the mountains.

"I know. I'm not trying to make it match." He could have, and he would do something similar shortly, but not just yet. One step at a time. "This is more inspiration than anything else."

That got another nod. "What's it like, traveling around like this? Aren't you in danger when the … when his… you know, from warriors?" Yes. Even here people didn't like to speak Haou's name. He hadn't run across many people who did, and he'd covered a huge portion of the known world over the years.

"Death Koala helps watch my back," he said, gesturing with one paint-covered brush to his partner. "And they don't usually bother an artist, anyway." He'd even sold a few paintings to some of the lower-ranking people in Haou's army. It made for a very good cover when they all thought of him as a harmless painter.

She smiled over at the koala, who waved back at her before returning to his nap. "Do you think learning how to duel would help me against the vampires?"

He wasn't surprised to find that was still on her mind. He considered the question with all the care it deserved. "I don't know if it would hurt. If nothing else, it's a very useful skill to learn."

"Do you know how to duel?"

Hayato set his brush down and considered that question as well. He didn't even know her name and she seemed more together than a lot of the people he'd met around here. The anger over what happened to her grandfather probably helped with that. "I'm not that good at it. That's why I decided to be an artist instead. There wasn't anything I could really do otherwise."

She set her jaw firmly. "The vampires work for him. I know they do. So I'm going to do everything I can to stop him, because if I stop him, then I stop _them_."

He couldn't argue with that, even if he'd wanted to. But training to be a duelist or a vampire killer – or both – wasn't easy at all.

This was the problem with being an undercover spy of his type: he couldn't tell her what he really wanted to, how many people he'd seen try to be a warrior and fail because they just didn't have what it took. But what he also knew was this: someone had to try. Because if no one tried, then Haou had already won.

"There are people who could help you," he said instead. "Not just as a vampire killer but a soldier to fight him. But they're not here. Not in this village." He wanted to trust her, just a little. But he couldn't. Not before his message was sent out anyway. The others needed to know what he'd found out about Ryou.

But she only nodded. "I know. My father insists that we should just move away and try to find a safer place."

 _There aren't any safer places._ Even if Haou's forces weren't here now, beyond the vampires, they would come soon enough. Perhaps even sooner, because of the vampires. They could be scouting for their master's troops even as they fed on people.

"What are you going to do, then?" He started to return his attention to the painting. He needed to get it ready before he left that afternoon. He didn't want to spend another night in town, not after what had happened the night before. He didn't _think_ he'd been recognized but he didn't want to take a chance, either. The sooner he got out of the area and could get his information on its way, the better.

She fidgeted a little, casting nervous looks back toward town and then back toward him. "Could I go with you?"

Hayato hadn't ever actually had his jaw drop in surprise before. But he could do little more than stare at her in this moment.

"See, if I tell my parents that I want to go with you, see the world, that kind of thing, they won't give me as much trouble as they would if I just said I was leaving on my own." She let out a small, shaky laugh. "I'm sorry. We just met and I haven't even introduced myself and I'm throwing all of this on you."

Hayato held his hand out at once. "Maeda Hayato. You can call me Hayato."

"Makurada Junko." She took his hand and shook it warmly. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

He would have to make certain that she didn't realize what kind of position in the rebel army that he held. At least not until she was part of it herself and could be trusted.

Well, maybe. There were still people who didn't know what he did or that he had anything at all to do with the rebellion. And sometimes, that was for the best.

* * *

Manjoume lounged at the edge of the cave, refusing to actually look inside. He wouldn't have seen anything if he did; all of the spirits who lived here were already out searching far and wide. That was part of why he didn't look.

Another reason was because seeing the empty cave would just make him worry about them and Manjoume wasn't ever going to worry about those spirits. Just because they considered him their leader and their friend, just because they would do anything at all that they asked of him, just because they were weak little zero attacks that could barely do anything but had some amazing special effects that could do _everything_ if the right person – read, him – asked them to do…

Well, he didn't want to worry and he wasn't going to, because none of them had been gone all that long and worrying was for people who weren't him.

Instead, he cast his glance now and then to where Tenjoin-kun leaned against a spill of rocks, her attention on the view spread out before them. He wanted to say something to her, but he didn't know what.

 _She's worried about the Kaiser._ And well she should be; _that_ was something to worry about. What little information they had about what had happened to him was more than enough to give anyone nightmares.

Manjoume didn't want to tell her, but he kind of hoped that their friend had managed a brave death. In that situation, it was about the best that one could hope for.

"Tenjoin-kun," he murmured, shifting a little closer. "I wanted – I wondered -" He had no idea of what might come after that and he wasn't at all bothered by the fact that a large tiger with a lovely pale-haired fairy on his back bounced into the cave and hurtled to a stop right in front of him.

"Sir Manjoume," Spirit of the Gentle Breeze whispered, her voice no louder than a gust of wind, "we found your ally some distance from here, in a valley that holds a village inside. We did not have time to speak or show ourselves; there was someone we did not know with him."

Both Asuka and Manjoume nodded at that; it was standard procedure for long distance agents not to make contact unless the circumstances were absolutely desperate, especially when there were others around whose trustworthiness wasn't certain.

Soul Tiger spoke next. "But we could hear what they spoke of, and he will leave the valley very soon, perhaps even later today. She will be coming with him, but we may have a chance to speak."

"There is another village outside of the valley, one with a well stocked marketplace. They will likely go there to get supplies," Spirit of the Gentle Breeze added.

Manjoume nodded; he wasn't surprised that these two were the ones who'd returned first with results. Spirit of the Gentle Breeze could travel on the wind itself, and Soul Tiger didn't have a body to weigh him down. "Thanks. I'll take care of this."

The two of them returned to rest; they knew they'd go out again as soon as he had more information and orders for them.

Asuka already headed inside and Manjoume fell into place with her. "Who do you think Edo's going to want to send?" he asked. There was an entire network of humans and spirits who could fit into this situation.

"I think I know." Asuka's smile held a tiny shred of satisfaction to it. There was only one person he could think of that would merit that and he wasn't going to argue about using him for it at all.

And as always, the major factor in their success or failure remained on what the Haou could learn from his two most preciously guarded captives.

* * *

Haou's fingers clamped firmly down on Hell Kaiser's hair, to the point where it would've caused pain if he'd still been a proper member of the living.

"And you're certain about this?" Golden eyes glared down at the enslaved vampire. He wished that he'd thought to dredge his prisoner's memory of this before, but better late than never.

"Yes, Haou-sama." Ryou bit the words off with all the sternness that he could. Haou knew how well he hated the honorific, but he forewent gloating over how well-trained the vampire was for the moment. Instead, he whirled to where Johan knelt, submissive, obedient, loyal, and loving fool.

"Is he correct?"

Johan nodded at once, regret written in every line of his body. "Yes, Haou-sama. I should've told you before, but I didn't think about it."

That wasn't very surprising. The way he'd conditioned Johan, the man didn't think of anything at all except pleasing his master. Giving vague information about spies that may or may not even still exist after his capture didn't come under that heading.

But now, Haou smiled his darkest, most twisted smile. "Both of you get ready for battle. I've got a loose end that needs to be clipped off, it seems."

"Yes, Haou-sama," the two of them chorused, each of them departing at a moment's notice to conduct their preparations.

 _Maeda Hayato, I am coming for you._

 **To Be Continued**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing involved in this story unless I invented it myself. This is written for fun, not for profit. All forms of feedback eagerly accepted. Concrit is loved the most, but everything is welcome.  
 **Fandoms:** Yu-Gi-Oh GX  
 **Title:** Paint, Wine,  & Roses  
 **Characters:** Hayato, Asuka,  & Misawa  
 **Word Count:** chapter 4: 2,891|| **story:** 10,876  
 **Genre:** Drama, Angst|| **Rated:** PG-13  
 **Challenge:** Written for the Diversity Writing Challenge, section I, #07, multichapter with exactly 4 chapters; Written for the GX Non-Flash Bingo, #007, Maeda Hayato; Written for the Halloween Trick or Treat (Advent), Day #1: use a random character generator three times. Use all of these characters in a fic.  
 **Notes:** This takes place in the world where Juudai is the incarnation of the Darkness of Destruction. Johan has been broken by him and Ryou...well, this is how what happened to him is revealed.  
 **Summary:** Hayato is just a wandering artist, seeking new vistas to paint. In a world where the incarnation of the Destructive Darkness seeks to rule, even a wandering artist can be more than what he seems.

* * *

They looked like any other average couple in many parts of the world. She carried a great many furs and skins that she had hunted and taken care of herself, giving them something to offer at the various bazaars and markets that they stopped at. He carried fruits and vegetables and the occasional batch of herb, extolling all of their virtues to anyone who would stand still long enough to listen to him. Sometimes he didn't ask that they stand still. He could make himself heard when he wanted to.

The various farmers and herdsmen who they bargained with were too busy trying to make their deals to notice the way that both of them kept their attention just a little sharp, as if waiting for someone and nervous that they might miss whoever it was. Even if they had noticed, no one would have thought anything about it. This was a hard world, a world at war, and if these two had any reason to avoid either Haou's army or the rebellion, then none of these people wanted to know about it. They had their own problems to deal with.

"Any sign of him at all?" Misawa murmured after one of Taniya's trips through the marketplace. Ostensibly she was looking for a place to do some trading for whatever they couldn't provide for themselves. It gave her a reason to explore and learn where the various pathways went and who might be on those pathways.

Taniya shook her head and started to go through her collection of skins and furs again. She needed to keep them all in the best of condition. As much as they were on one mission, their secondary course was always to get what provisions they could, and her work helped with that.

"I haven't heard anything about his army, either," she murmured, dividing up the products by which kind they were. That lack of information reassured and worried them at the same time. If they heard nothing, then perhaps there was nothing to hear. On the other hand, Haou could be moving in secret, to strike somewhere without warning.

It would not be the first time. They all knew it would not be the last.

Misawa settled on the small stool he'd provided for himself and poured a small cup of water from the carafe he'd also brought along. He'd spent many long days in the hot sun doing this and he didn't dare risk dehydrating. He was always careful not to get water on Taniya's products, though once in a while he would throw some on his, just to keep them from drying out as well. There was a market for certain dried fruits. That just wasn't what he supplied today.

They'd already been here four days and the marketplace wouldn't be available for more than another two or three. If Hayato didn't turn up in that time period, they'd have to move on and hope they could find him somewhere else.

The information that Manjoume's spirit companions provided was good, but not perfect. He hadn't turned up at the first marketplace they'd tried, where all those spirits thought for certain he'd be. To make it worse, there hadn't been any sign of him along the way, either. This didn't bode well at all.

He'd just put the empty cup down when he caught sight of a wagon pulled by a mule, slowly trundling through the marketplace. It wasn't coming at all from where he would've expected Hayato to come, but there he was all the same: tired and dirty, and with a strange woman on the seat next to him. That tallied with what information they had, so Misawa wondered more why they'd come from this direction than anything else.

 _Will he see us?_ Misawa knew he had a knack for people not noticing him; it annoyed him when it came to the people he spent the most of his time with, but when he was on missions like this, he reveled in it. The less people who saw him and could identify him, the better.

At first it looked as if Hayato might not have. Then just when he would've passed on, Hayato clucked at his mule and handed the reins over to his companion.

"I'm going to do a little trading," he said, voice clearly tired as he reached into the back of the wagon. "Go on to the inn, I'll meet you there later."

She nodded, urging the mule onward once Hayato had out what he wanted. He was still a bit of a distance from Misawa and hadn't made any motions that indicated he recognized him. Instead, he made his way over to a spare spot a short distance down and set up a small selection of paintings.

"I'll trade these for anything you like!" Hayato declared, not quite at the top of his lungs, but making certain that he could be heard. "Some of the best artwork you'll find anywhere! Useful for gifts and decorating!"

A few people ghosted by, one or two even trading some of their works for his, mostly in the nature of food. Even in a place like this and in a case of war, there were people who had birthdays and weddings and children to celebrate, or who just wanted to give their home a little touch-up, or give something to someone they cared about.

Misawa didn't so much as blink when he saw Taniya wandering up to Hayato's improvised stand. The wind carried their words to him as clearly as if he stood there himself.

"I wouldn't have expected to see an artist in this neck of the woods," she said, taking a long look at what he had to offer. Misawa translated that easily enough; they'd all been worried about him and was he all right?

"An artist goes where the art calls to them," was Hayato's reply. By which he meant that he was all right and more information would have to come later. Misawa suspected now wasn't the right time. Otherwise, Hayato would've waited until he'd cleaned up more to start selling his wares.

Taniya made a noncommittal noise and gestured toward one of the paintings. Misawa couldn't see it very well from where he was, but he'd get a better look later, he knew. He would learn more by listening than looking.

"That one looks interesting. What are you asking for it? I can provide some very fine leopardskins and a couple of rare furs for this area. They might be useful on cold nights."

That was nothing more nor less than the truth; no codes here. Just her making an offer for something far more useful than would meet the average eye.

"I think I have one more to your liking here," Hayato counter-offered and a chill ran down Misawa's spine. _Two. That's a lot of information. Too much for a casual drop._

Back and forth it went, and in the end, Taniya handed over a set of furs and skins that would make wealthy men envious. In exchange she received two paintings in hand-made frames, each exquisitely rendered from what Misawa could see of them. He kept a reasonable amount of attention on his own work as well, so he couldn't tell anything yet from the artwork. He and Taniya would have to look it over once they were out of there.

Cries came without warning, shrieks of anger and of fear and terror. Those cries could mean only one thing: someone was being attacked somewhere. Misawa tensed, hand sliding for the deck hidden underneath his shirt, but caught sight of Taniya's quick headshake, telling him to stay where he was.

Hayato felt no such urge, his eyes going round with fear. "That's Junko!" He hurried toward the collection of homes and buildings that made up this wayside town, Death Koala now running alongside of him. Misawa bit his lip, staring, as Taniya came back over to him.

"We need to get out of here," she murmured. "This place isn't going to exist in another hour or so. Hayato warned me that Haou's troops have been following him for two days. That's what took him so long."

Misawa bit off a few choice words even as he started to pack what they would need to take with them. They kept their most precious possessions with them at all times, ready to leave at a moment's notice, though they'd never done so this quickly.

Thanks to Taniya's roaming, she could lead him through the marketplace's quickly growing chaos. More and more people's shrieks and howls of fear and pain filled the air, as did the cries of warriors thirsting for death and pain. Misawa flinched when he heard a roar he knew belonged to Topaz Tiger.

Advanced Gem Beast Topaz Tiger now, he knew. He did not want to see it again, either.

It was probably only by the best of good luck that he and Taniya vanished into the depths of the forest by the time Haou's first troops reached where they'd been. Even more good luck that no one who knew them could say where they had gone.

When it comes to spying, the best lies are the ones that you don't have to tell at all.

* * *

Hayato moved with all of his speed toward the sound of shrieking. After a few days of traveling together, he could recognize Junko's voice clearly. He'd never heard it raised in fear like this, but he knew it anyway. He didn't know if he'd be able to get there in time, but he couldn't just sit there. At least he'd made the drop; the rebels would get the information, if Misawa and Taniya made it away in time. He thought they would; with fresh information in their hands, it was their duty to get back to the others, not make useless heroes of themselves, no matter how much they might want to.

He pitched to a stop when he came to the end of the path that led to the bazaar. This was where the main town was, and this was where Haou and his troops stood. A rock outcropping a short distance away, and the fact it was already late in the day, provided cover for two other figures he could only see the general shape of. He knew who they were. When the sun set all the way, the vampires would be unleashed.

Johan, dressed in the leather outfit that had become his staple once he'd become Haou's slave, stood before Junko, who was bracketed by Advanced Gem Beast Topaz Tiger and Advanced Gem Beast Amber Mammoth. He'd never seen her this terrified and he did not want to see it now.

"Where is the artist? The spy?" Haou spoke, standing a short distance from Johan. "Tell me and I'll spare your life." His lips curved into a twisted smile. "I'll even give you a place in my castle. I can always use more servants."

Junko shook her head. For all of her fear, she kept her shoulders up and her head as high as possible. "Even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you."

"If she starts going on about how I'm evil and will be stopped, kill her," Haou instructed Johan. "I don't want to hear everything I already know about."

"Yes, Haou-sama," Johan replied without hesitation. Hayato shuddered; he hadn't spent enough time around Johan before their ex-leader was captured, but hearing that complete submission sickened him.

 _Hayato._ Death Koala rested a paw on his shoulder. _We need to go. She understands what she's doing. She's giving you time to get away._

Hayato's heart sunk. He didn't dare try to catch her attention. They'd never even discussed what might happen if they were captured separately. He'd intend to; he'd tried to think of everything that could go wrong, but this one had slipped his mind. Well, not so much slipped, as he hadn't imagined it being that possible. He'd thought if one of them were caught, it would be him.

The way he'd come, Junko couldn't see him. Haou's army could, but they didn't seem to recognize him as the spy that they wanted.

 _They don't know what I look like._ It was his only weapon. His only tool and he had no guarantee that it would work. He started to shift forward, when Haou turned to look at the vampires in waiting.

"Hell Kaiser. Is she a part of your rebellion?" A mocking smirk touched his lips. "Speak." Unlike when he addressed Johan, now his tone was that of a master ordering a pet dog around.

The voice was indeed that of Ryou, but so much colder and without life to it. "Not to my knowledge, Haou-sama."

"Of course I'm not!" Junko protested. "I'm just a traveler!"

Haou turned back toward her. He too could see Hayato, but if he did, he seemed to attach no importance to him. Instead, all of his focus remained on Junko. "I didn't tell you to say anything." He considered for another few moments, then nodded. "If your spy friend is anywhere around, then I'm certain this will draw him out."

He made a gesture and one of his Evil Heroes appeared in front of Junko, seizing her by the arms and dragging her off of the wagon and to where Camula and Ryou awaited.

"Feast on her, Hell Kaiser." He paused, and everyone who could hear knew what came next would be horrible. "Make it _hurt_." One more breath of a moment. Hayato began to shift backward. "If anyone standing here leaves this place before she's dead, I'll consider that evidence you are the spy I'm looking for and you'll meet your end next. Now, Hell Kaiser, _obey me_!"

Hayato knew that he should've gone when he had a chance. It wouldn't make any difference to Junko, except that she would know her life had bought his, the way she tried. All she could do now was squirm and scream in Evil Hero Inferno Wing's grip, then in that of the Hell Kaiser.

He wasn't close enough to see if there was any mercy in Ryou's eyes. He wanted to think there was, even if he couldn't put it to use. But he memorized everything that he could. If he could do nothing else, he could do this.

It would become another painting, one that would end up in the hands of the rebellion days later. It would tell in the colors and in the shapes and the placements of what he drew what happened there. It would speak of the hold Haou held over Hell Kaiser and how their old friend could no longer be trusted in the slightest. He was like Johan, lost to them. If there remained any freedom to him, then it wasn't freedom that he could act on at that moment, and it was too dangerous to try to get close enough to find out otherwise. Any further information would have to come from Ryou himself, if it came at all.

Hayato knew none of that. What he knew were Junko's screams and how they tore into his heart. How he had to stand and watch, and how he could not defend himself or anyone else when Haou's warriors closed in on him as well. What he knew was the pain of broken bones and the sound of mocking laughter from Haou's troops.

They did not kill him. Hayato almost wondered if that were the true punishment, that and Junko's death.

"If any of you are that spy, then I suggest you find some other way to spend your time than watching me and mine," Haou declared. Those others who survived the onslaught remained as Hayato was, broken and beaten into the dirt. "I spare your life this once, on the single condition that you spread word of what happens to those who dare to spy on me."

By now the sun had set and Haou brought Hell Kaiser closer to him. "Speak, Hell Kaiser. Tell them what your fate is now, and why."

"I once spied on Haou-sama for the rebellion," Hell Kaiser said. Again, Hayato heard no emotion or life in his words. "But he uncovered my deceptions and I was tormented in his dungeons for months before he gave me to Camula-sama." Was that a hint of hate there? Hayato thought so. "Now I am his vampire."

"My very loyal and obedient vampire," Haou purred in pride. "But none of you need worry. I chose his fate for him for a very special reason. Any other spies will become his meals. You could even last for days. But that will come another time."

He gathered up his troops and soon only the handful of survivors remained. Hayato could hardly move. He could see Junko's collapsed body not that far away, but he still couldn't move.

 _I'm sorry..._ What else could he say? What could he even have done?

Too weary to do anything else, he just closed his eyes. If he woke up, he would search for aid and shelter. If he could. And if he didn't...would that be so bad? In a world with Haou, the avatar of the Destructive Darkness, would it really be that bad?

 **The End**

 **Note:** Thank you for reading and I hope that you enjoyed the story. Please let me know what you thought of it if at all possible.


End file.
